IWWc.. 


we  !\l!  2 


tn  {Mrmorfitm, 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2018  with  funding  from 
Columbia  University  Libraries 


https://archive.org/details/inmemoriamedmundOOunse 


) 


I 


\ 


3n  Qltmomm. 


Edmund  Alexander  de  Schweinitz,  S.T.D., 

EPISCOPUS  FRATRUM. 


Born  March  20,  1825. 

Entered  into  Rest,  December  18,  1887. 


I 


EDWIN  G.  KLOSE, 
MANAGER. 


i 


TN  the  Advent  season,  usually  on  the  Sunday  next  preceding 
^  the  Christmas  festival,  it  is  the  custom  of  the  Moravian 
Church  at  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  to  hold  a  special  service  for  all 
who  are  engaged  in  the  work  of  the  congregation  as  well  as 
in  the  general  work  of  the  Church,  whether  as  Ministers, 
Elders,  Trustees,  Teachers,  Musicians,  Sextons,  etc.  For  the 
special  bond  which  causes  the  lovefeast  to  be  held,  is  fellow¬ 
ship  in  work  for  Christ  and  His  Church. 

An  informal  spirit  pervades  this  meeting.  Opportunity  is 
given  to  everyone  to  make  suggestions  as  to  Church  work,  to 
speak  of  improvements  that  may  be  advantageously  introduced, 
to  call  attention  to  abuses  that  may  threaten  an  entrance,  and 
to  free  the  mind  of  thoughts  which  are  as  a  burden  to  the  soul. 
As  the  hour  for  closing  draws  near,  the  presiding  minister  is 
wont  to  recall  the  names  of  those  servants  of  the  Church  and 
her  living  Head,  whom  the  Lord  has  been  pleased  to  <  all 
home  to  Himself  during  the  year  since  the  last  meeting,  and 
to  exhort  to  greater  faithfulness  and  devotion  on  the  part 
of  those  who  survive. 

Thus  it  was  on  the  afternoon  of  the  Fourth  Sunday  in  Ad¬ 
vent,  December  t8,  1887,  when  one  who  had  often  presided 


4 


at  this  meeting  while  Pastor  of  the  congregation  and  while 
presiding  officer  of  the  Provincial  Board,  officiated  for  the  last 
time  in  an  earthly  sanctuary.  Who  of  his  fellow  servants  for 
Christ’s  sake  and  the  Gospel’s  will  ever  forget  that  the  truth 
of  the  last  hymn  which  he  announced — 

“  One  army  of  the  living  God, 

To  His  command  we  bow  ; 

Part  of  the  host  have  crossed  the  flood, 

And  part  are  crossing  now” — 

was  so  soon  exemplified  in  his  being  called  home  by  that 
Master  Whom  he  had  so  faithfully  loved  and  served  !  For  at 
eventide  on  the  self-same  day  the  summons  came  to  him  and 
he  “  crossed  the  flood,”  to  be  “  forever  with  the  Lord.” 

“  Servant  of  God  !  well  done  ; 

Rest  from  thy  loved  employ  ; 

The  battle  fought,  the  victory  won, 

Enter  thy  Master’s  joy.” 


( 


Edmund  Alexander  de  Schweinitz 


was  born  at  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  on  March  20,  1825, 
where  his  father,  the  Rev.  Lewis  David  de 
Schweinitz,  Ph.D.,  was  then  stationed,  filling  the 
offices  of  member  of  the  Provincial  Helpers’  Con¬ 
ference  or  Board  of  Direction  of  the  Northern 
3  District  of  the  American  Province  of  the  Unitas 

Fratrum,  commonly  called  the  Moravian  Church, 
Senior  Minister  of  Bethlehem  congregation,  Senior 
Civilis  of  the  Unitas  Fratrum,  and  titular  Pro¬ 
prietor  and  actual  Administrator  of  the  Unity’s 
Estates  in  North  America. 

Between  the  years  1831  and  1834  he  attended 
the  Parochial  School  at  Bethlehem,  and  in  the 
latter  year  entered  Nazareth  Hall  as  a  pupil 
in  the  academic  department.  Pive  years  later, 
^  having  completed  this  course,  he  became  a  mem- 


6 


her  of  the  Preparand  Class,  pursuing  classical  £ 

studies  preparatory  to  entering  the  Theological 

Seminary. 

In  the  year  1844  he  made  his  first  visit  to 
Europe,  and  after  spending  some  time  in  visiting 
relatives  and  family  connections  in  Germany,  was 
regularly  entered  as  a  student  in  the  University 
of  Berlin.  In  later  days  he  often  recalled  his 
student  life  and  deemed  it  a  special  privilege  that 
Neander  was  one  of  the  professors  with  whom  he 
stood  on  very  friendly  footing.  During  his  stay  C 

at  Berlin  he  became  a  member  of  the  Wingolj 
Verein ,  a  Christian  association  of  students. 

In  November,  1845,  received  his  first  Church 
appointment,  as  teacher  in  the  Boys’  School  at 
Zeyst,  Holland,  serving  here  until  June,  1846. 

His  experiences  as  an  American  teacher  of 
mainly  British  lads  in  a  Dutch  school  were  often 
trying,  but  with  many  of  his  colleagues  he  formed 
lasting  friendships,  which  he  was  privileged  to 
renew  in  later  years.  After  several  months  spent  ^ 


7 


g  in  traveling  he  returned  to  America,  pursuant  to 

a  call  to  serve  as  teacher  in  Nazareth  Hall.  The 
years  from  1847  to  1850  were  spent  in  this  insti¬ 
tution,  and  as  teacher  of  the  Classical  Department 
or  Preparand  Class. 

His  first  connection  with  the  Theological  Semi¬ 
nary  as  Professor,  was  severed  in  1850  by  his 
receiving  a  temporary  appointment  as  pastor  of 
the  Moravian  congregation  at  Canal  Dover,  Ohio. 
After  a  short  visit  to  Europe  in  the  same  year, 
)  when  he  was  married  at  Herrnhut,  Saxony,  on 

October  10,  to  Lydia  de  Tschirschky,  he  became 
pastor  of  the  Brethren’s  Church  at  Lebanon,  Pa. 
Here  he  spent  the  first  years  of  his  married  life, 
and  laid  the  foundation  of  many  friendships  with 
clergymen  and  divines  of  other  denominations. 
In  1853,  he  became  pastor  of  what  is  now  the 
Pirst  Moravian  Church  in  Philadelphia,  at  that 
time  our  only  Church  in  that  city,  which  had  been 
founded  by  his  ancestor.  Bishop  Count  Zinzendorf 
t  in  1741-43.  His  labors  here  as  in  his  former 


8 


charge  were  owned  and  blessed  of  die  Lord, 
and  during  his  incumbency,  die  church-edifice  at 
the  corner  of  Franklin  and  Wood  Streets  was 
erected. 

After  the  death  of  the  Rev.  Edward  Rondthaler, 
in  1855,  he  undertook,  in  addition  to  faithful  work 
in  the  congregation,  the  arduous  duties  of  the 
theological  professorship  until  the  temporary 
establishment  of  the  Seminary  at  the  Ephrata 
House,  in  Nazareth.  But  it  was  not  only  in  the 
congregation  and  the  Theological  Seminary  that 
he  was  active. 

For  many  years  constitutional  changes  had 
been  dreamed  of,  hoped  for,  openly  advocated  or 
antagonized,  and  now  was  come  the  period  of 
debate  and  decision  ;  and  in  this  hoping,  advocacy 
and  decision  he  bore  a  prominent  part,  both  in 
private  deliberations  and  consultations,  in  the 
semi-private  discussions  of  the  Ministers’  Confer¬ 
ences,  and  in  the  debates  of  the  Provincial  Synods. 
Such  confidence  in  his  principles  and  capabilities 


i 


9 


*  was  felt  by  his  brethren  that  the  Provincial  Synod 

of  1855,  by  express  resolution,  appointed  him  to 
be  the  Editor  of  The  Moravian ,  the  new  weekly 
Church-paper  which  was  to  succeed  the  Intelli¬ 
gencer ,  founded  thirty-three  years  before,  and  the 
Miscellany ,  which  the  Synod  of  1849  founded. 
Wisely  using  the  authority  granted  by  the  Synod 
the  new  venture  was  so  successful,  that  the  Synod 
of  1856  adopted  a  resolution  of  commendation 
which  forms  The  Moravian  s  platform  even  at  the 
)  present  time. 

His  multiplied  work,  though  voluntarily  borne, 
undermined  his  health  ;  and  humanly  speaking  the 
Church,  of  which  he  was  so  faithful  a  servant, 
might  not  have  been  called  upon  to  mourn  his 
loss  at  a  comparatively  early  age,  if  he  had  not 
attempted,  with  apparent  but  only  temporary 
success,  to  do  work  which  was  amply  sufficient 
for  three  men,  namely,  the  duties  of  the  active 
pastorate,  those  of  a  professor,  and  those  of  an 
editor  who  had  to  contend  with  more  than  the 


I 


io 


ordinary  amount  of  lethargy  and  inertia,  as  well  ^ 

as  with  considerable  active  opposition.  Add  to 
this  the  strain  caused  by  the  constitutional 
discussions,  and  it  is  no  wonder  that  his  health 
suffered.  Yet  his  work  was  well  done,  more 
especially  in  the  editorial  chair  and  in  the  con¬ 
gregation,  for  there  are  many  who  will  arise  and 
call  him  blessed. 

On  October  9,  1856,  on  the  first  ballot,  he  was 
elected  a  delegate  to  the  General  Synod  of  the 
Unitas  Fratrum  which  convened  at  Herrnhut, 

Saxony,  in  1857,  and,  though  one  of  the  youngest 
members  of  that  important  convocation,  he  exer¬ 
cised  no  little  influence  in  the  deliberations  which 
resulted  in  the  establishment  of  the  constitutional 
principles  on  which  the  present  general  and  pro¬ 
vincial  government  of  the  Moravian  Church  is 
based.  In  fact,  from  the  year  1855  to  the  time  of 
his  death,  his  activity  was  so  interwoven  with  the 
history  of  the  Northern  District  of  the  American 
Province  of  the  Unitas  Fratrum,  that  scarcely  a  ( 


measure  can  be  cited  which  will  not  at  once  sug¬ 
gest  his  name. 

After  establishing  The  Moravian  on  a  good 
basis,  he  retired  from  its  direct  control  in  1858, 
but  only  for  a  time  ;  for  he  was  again  called  to 
take  charge  of  it  in  1861,  shortly  after  his  as¬ 
sumption  of  the  Lititz  pastorate,  and  remained 
in  prominent  connection  with  the  Church-paper 
until  1867,  when  he  permanently  retired. 

As  the  Philadelphia  pastorate,  so  the  Lititz  pas¬ 
torate  was  owned  and  blessed  by  the  Lord  in  a 
remarkable  degree,  and  many  hearts  were  grieved 
when  he  accepted  the  call  to  Bethlehem  in  1864. 
But  Bethlehem  was  destined  to  be  the  place  of  his 
greatest  pastoral  work,  and  for  sixteen  years  he 
ministered  unto  it  in  spiritual  things.  During  his 
incumbency  both  the  chapel  and  the  large  church 
were  remodeled  and  renovated,  and  great  impetus 
was  given  to  congregational  work. 

However  arduous  the  duties  of  the  pastorate 
of  the  Bethlehem  congregation,  our  departed 


brother,  true  to  the  principles  which  he  had 
adopted  to  guide  him  in  his  service  of  the  Church, 
did  with  all  his  migdit  what  his  hand  found  to  do, 
and  continued  doing  it  while  health  and  strength 
remained.  As  noted  above,  his  connection  with 
The  Moravian  continued  until  1867,  and  he  de¬ 
livered  lectures  on  the  History  of  the  Brethren’s 
Church  in  the  Theological  Seminary,  and  became 
President  of  that  institution  in  September,  1867. 
The  development  of  the  Seminary  into  its  present 
form  is  largely  due  to  his  influence  and  active 
endeavors  ;  for  it  was  he  who  successfully  inaugu¬ 
rated  the  plan  of  drawing  financial  support 
directly  from  the  churches.  In  these  years  he 
gave  many  a  practical  proof  of  the  truism  that  to 
do  things  you  must  do  them — a  lesson  which  has 
not  yet  been  fully  learned. 

Having  been  ordained  Deacon  on  March  3, 
1850,  and  Presbyter,  on  October  12,  1856,  he  was 
solemnly  consecrated  to  the  Episcopate  on  August 
28,  1870,  The  conservative  tendency  of  this 


i3 


^  spiritual  office  made  itself  felt  in  his  character, 

and  his  influence  in  the  Church  at  large  greatly 
increased.  Already  in  1864  he  had  been  elected 
Vice-President  of  the  Provincial  Synod,  and  in  the 
Synods  of  1876,  1878,  1881,  and  1884  he  served 
as  President.  In  the  year  1878  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  Provincial  Elders’  Conference  or 
Board  of  Direction  of  the  Northern  District  of 
the  American  Province  of  the  Moravian  Church, 
and  was  re-elected  in  1881  and  1884,  serving  as 
President  of  the  Board.  This  period  was  one  of 
great  anxiety  and  care,  and  the  increasing  de¬ 
mands  upon  his  time  and  strength  compelled  him, 
in  1880,  to  resign  the  pastorship  of  the  Church  at 
Bethlehem.  But  to  the  end  of  his  life  he  took 
deep  interest  in  the  welfare  ol  the  congregation 
with  which  he  had  so  long  been  identified. 

As  Bishop  and  delegate  of  the  Provincial  Board 
he  attended  the  sessions  of  the  General  Synod  of 
1879,  at  Herrnhut,  Saxony,  and  at  the  special 
desire  of  the  members  present  from  the  German 


Province,  seconded  by  the  brethren  of  the  British 
Province,  he  was  unanimously  elected  its  Presi¬ 
dent.  There  can  be  no  question  as  to  the  fact 
that  this  honor  was  deeply  appreciated,  marking 

as  it  did  the  complete  subsidence  of  all  possible 

• 

estrangement  and  suspicion  caused  by  the  consti¬ 
tutional  discussions  of  1857.  Those  who  know 
from  experience  how  well  skilled  he  was  in  the 
government  of  deliberative  bodies  such  as  Pro- 
vincial  Synods  are  apt  to  be,  need  not  be  told 
that  he  presided  over  the  sessions  of  the  Gen¬ 
eral  Synod  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  all  the 
members. 

His  plans  for  traveling  alter  the  Synod  were 
somewhat  disturbed  by  the  illness  of  his  brother, 
Bishop  Emil  A.  de  Schweinitz,  but  he  was  enabled 
to  visit  all  but  one  of  our  congregations  in 
Bohemia,  as  well  as  many  ol  the  ancient  seats  of 
the  Brethren's  Church.  This  was  a  great  delight 
to  him,  in  as  much  as  he  had  devoted  much  time 
to  the  study  of  the  history  of  the  Ancient  Unitas 


i5 


»i  Fratrum,  had  been  engaged  for  years  upon  the 

preparation  of  the  work  which  gives  the  only  ade¬ 
quate  account  of  that  Church,  and  had  been 
largely  instrumental  in  establishing  our  Church- 
work  in  Bohemia  on  its  present  basis. 

In  1885  he  resigned  the  Presidency  of  the 
Theological  Seminary,  and  all  his  remaining  time 
and  strength  were  devoted  to  the  general  work 
of  the  Church,  including  the  Presidency  of  the 
Society  for  Propagating  the  Gospel  among  the 
5  Heathen.  At  times  this  general  work  was  very 

exhausting  in  its  demands,  and  the  labors  and 
hardships  of  visitations  were  proved  to  the 
utmost  from  the  very  beginning  of  his  service 
as  Provincial  Elder.  Spiritually,  he  enjoyed  the 
work  in  spite  of  its  many  difficulties,  but  his 
strength  having  been  undermined  by  overwork 
in  behalf  of  the  Church,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
his  end  was  hastened  by  the  demands  of  his  offi¬ 
cial  position. 

•  For  the  past  year  his  health  visibly  failed,  and 


his  friends  feared  that  the  Church  would  soon  lose 
a  devoted  and  efficient  servant  and  counselor,  and 
his  family  an  affectionate  husband  and  father. 
Under  strict  medical  advice  he  had  refrained,  to  a 
considerable  extent,  from  taking  part  in  any 
public  service  ;  but  his  spirit  chafed  under  the  wise 
restriction.  At  his  own  request,  he  dedicated  the 
Laurel  Street  Chapel  of  the  Bethlehem  congrega¬ 
tion  on  Sunday  afternoon,  December  11,  and  on 
the  day  of  his  death,  Sunday,  December  18,  as 
before  noted,  he  presided  at  the  love-feast  held 
by  the  servants  of  the  Brethren’s  Church  at  Beth¬ 
lehem.  A  few  hours  later — about  8  o’clock — he 
sat  reading  in  his  own  home.  Feeling  sleepy,  he 
closed  his  book  and  laid  it  down  ;  then  leaned 
his  head  upon  his  hand  and  went  to  sleep.  In 
this  restful  position  he  was  found  half  an  hour 
later,  his  face  wearing  an  expression  that  betok¬ 
ened  peaceful  slumber,  but  the  waking  had 
already  taken  place.  His  “crown  of  life”  was 


won. 


This  memorial  notice  would  be  incomplete 
without  a  brief  reference  to  his  gifts  as  a  pulpit 
orator  and  to  his  literary  labors.  Besides  his 
connection  with  The  Moravian ,  his  numerous 
contributions  to  encyclopedias,  his  monographs 
on  “Systematic  Beneficence,”  on  “The  Moravian 
Episcopate”  and  on  “The  Financial  History  of 
the  Sustentation  Fund,”  and  his  articles  in  the 
Transactions  of  the  Moravian  Historical  Society, 
he  compiled  two  editions  of  “The  Moravian 
Manual.”  His  most  prominent  literary  works, 
however,  were  “  The  Fife  and  Times  of  David 
Zeisberofer  ”  and  the  first  volume  of  “The  His- 
tory  of  the  Unitas  Fratrum.”  For  some  time 
he  had  been  collecting  material  for  the  second 
and  concluding  volume  of  the  History,  and  his 
last  literary  work  was  the  compilation  of  the 
Historical  Sketch  of  the  Society  for  Propagating 
the  Gospel  among  the  Heathen,  which  was  read 
at  the  Society’s  Centennial  Anniversary  on 
November  i.  In  the  year  1871  the  degree  of 


S.T.D.  was  conferred  upon  him  by  Columbia 
College,  New  York,  in  appreciation  of  his  lit¬ 
erary  and  scholastic  labors.  In  1874  he  was 
one  of  the  Vice-Presidents  of  the  meeting  ot  the 
Evangelical  Alliance  at  New  York.  For  many 
years  he  was  Vice-President  ot  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  St.  Luke’s  Hospital,  at  South  Beth¬ 
lehem,  Pa. 

H  is  first  wife  having  departed  this  life  on  Sep¬ 
tember  12,  1866,  leaving  two  sons  and  two 

daughters,  he  was  married  on  October  1,  1868,  to 
Isabel  Allison  Boggs,  who,  with  one  daughter  and 
the  children  of  the  first  marriage,  mourn  their 
personal  loss. 

The  loss  sustained  by  the  Church  of  which  he 
was  a  member,  is  well  expressed  by  the  official 
minute  published  by  his  surviving  colleagues  in 
the  Provincial  Board,  part  of  which  is  as  follows  : 

“We  know  that  we  voice  the  sentiment  of  the 
entire  American  Province  of  the  Brethren's 
Church,  in  quoting,  with  reference  to  his  depar- 


19 


a  tu re,  the  words  of  David  :  ‘  Know  ye  not  that 

there  is  a  prince  fallen  this  day  in  Israel  ?  ’ 

“  His  eminent  gifts  as  a  preacher  and  pastor,  as 
a  lecturer  and  writer,  as  a  presiding  officer  and  a 
counselor,  made  him  the  man  to  whom  we  all 
looked  up  with  the  highest  esteem  and  respect, 
while  his  tender  sympathy  and  uniform  kindness, 
his  indefatigable  zeal  and  energy  in  the  cause  of 
the  Lord,  his  loyalty  to  the  Church  of  his  fathers, 
made  him  an  example  worthy  of  admiration  and 
*5  imitation.” 

At  the  funeral  services,  which  were  held  on 
December  21,  1887,  the  Rev.  J.  Mortimer  Lever¬ 
ing  spoke  as  follows  : 

“  Our  Church  mourns,  not  because  we  take 
black,  despairing  views  of  death,  especially  such 
a  death ;  for  he  has  only  been  called  up  higher. 
According  to  the  true  teaching  of  our  Church, 
such  a  death  suggests  rather  thanksgiving  and 
peace  ;  suggests  the  thoughts  of  those  lines 
I  which  he  loved  to  sing,  or  to  hear  sung,  in  con- 


20 


nection  with  such  a  variety  of  occasions  and 
circumstances  : 

‘  For  when  these  blest  days  are  over, 

To  the  arms  of  my  dear  Saviour, 

I  shall  be  conveyed  to  rest, 

Amen,  yea,  my  lot  is  blest.’ 


“  It  would  be  utterly  at  variance  with  his  teach¬ 
ing  and  example,  with  his  heart’s  thoughts  and 
feelings  in  reference  to  departing  this  life,  if  we 
were  to  sorrow  to-day  with  the  sorrow  of  the  world, 
as  those  who  have  no  hope.  Nay,  we  mourn  be¬ 
cause,  for  the  time  being,  his  infinite  gain  is  our 
loss,  a  loss  which  we  deeply  feel.  Cords  of  affec¬ 
tionate  association,  of  confidence  in  his  presence, 
to  counsel,  to  direct  and  to  encourage,  of  a  cer¬ 
tain  kind  of  dependence  which  we  naturally  feel 
to  some  extent  overagainst  those  of  commanding 
spirit,  of  wisdom  and  experience  superior  to  the 
average,  of  unflinching  principle  and  undeviating 
integrity — these  cords  must  needs  be  severed  by 
such  a  departure.  Under  the  immediate  pain 


which  the  severing  of  these  cords  produces  we 
are  distressed,  and  under  the  first  shock  we  cry 
out,  ‘  Alas,  what  shall  we  do  !  ’  But  this  we  may 
well  afford  to  leave  with  confidence  to  the  Lord, 
our  Divine  Head,  Who  will  provide,  Who  abides 
‘the  same  yesterday,  to-day  and  forever,’  and 
Who 

‘  Never  yet  mistakes  hath  made 
In  His  vast  government.’ 

“We  will  try  rather  to  treasure  earnestly,  cheer¬ 
fully  and  hopefully  the  lesson  of  his  life  and  work, 
of  his  constant  influence  and  example,  for  these 
speak  most  eloquently  to  us  to-day,  as  his  tongue 
and  lips  now  silent  spoke  so  eloquently  and 
powerfully  from  this  pulpit  in  years  that  are  past. 
I  shall  attempt  nothing  further  in  this  trying  hour 
than  to  remind  you  of  the  final  lesson  he  taught 
us,  or,  rather,  our  Saviour  through  him  taught  us, 
in  his  most  significant  and  beautiful  end.  I  feel 
as  if  the  story  of  his  end  were  told  in  the  words 
which  record  the  departure  of  another  from  the 


22 


Church  Below  to  the  Church  on  High,  though 
under  very  different  circumstances  :  ‘  And  when 
he  had  said  this  he  fell  asleep.’ 

“No  comparison  can  of  course  be  made  with 
the  death  of  Stephen,  but  the  words  tell  the  story 
of  that  which  has  brought  us  together  to-day, 
nevertheless.  In  the  stillness  of  Sunday  evening, 
in  the  quiet  retirement  of  home,  he  did  most  liter¬ 
ally  fall  asleep — no  languishing,  no  suffering,  no 
struggle.  He  had  said  something  before  he  fell 
asleep,  and  can  we  especially,  who  heard  the 
words,  ever  forget  them  ?  Less  than  six  hours 
before  his  departure  he  sat  behind  this  table.  It 
was  covered  with  a  white  cloth  and  love-feast  was 
being  held  by  more  than  two  hundred  persons 
gathered  here  to  break  bread  together  in  the 
nearer  fellowship  of  service.  All  the  servants  of 
the  Church  in  Bethlehem  were  ofathered  here  in 
this  fellowship.  Presiding  over  this  gathering,  he 
addressed  to  us  a  few  words  of  earnest,  affection¬ 
ate  admonition.  His  last  admonition,  his  last  pub- 


lie  address,  his  last  exhortation  to  his  brethren  in 
holy  service  was  to  ‘be  faithful  unto  death.’ 
We  all  remember  the  words,  and  when  he  had 
said  this  to  us  he  fell  asleep,  himself  ‘  faithful  unto 
death,’  faithful  to  the  Church,  faithful  to  his  breth¬ 
ren  and  his  sons  and  daughters  in  Christ,  faithful 
to  his  high  calling  as  an  overseer  of  the  Hock, 
faithful  above  all  things  to  Jesus  Christ,  his  Master 
and  his  Saviour.  These  words  which  he  spoke 
before  he  fell  asleep  will  remain  indelibly  im¬ 
pressed  upon  our  memory.  They  go  out  to  the 
whole  Church  as  his  last  message.  Pastors  of 
many  congregations  here  present  will  carry  them 
home  to  their  people  and  they  will  be  told  to 
others  who  are  not  here.  His  life  and  work  add 
force  to  this  his  dying  message,  and  the  Church 
which  he  so  long,  so  ably,  so  faithfully  served  will 
best  honor  his  memory  by  honoring  Christ  as  he 
honored  Him,  and  being  faithful  in  His  service 
unto  death. 

<k  Especially  to  us,  my  dear  brethren  in  the 


24 


ministry,  this  which  he  spoke  before  he  fell  asleep 
should  come  with  power.  Many  of  us  were  or¬ 
dained  to  the  holy  ministry  by  the  laying  on  of 
his  hands.  Let  us  treasure  this,  his  parting  ad¬ 
monition  ;  for,  beloved  brethren,  our  Church  and 
the  work  entrusted  to  it  in  these  times  need  above 
all  things  faithful  men.  If  it  pass  through  tribu¬ 
lation  or  suffer  loss,  it  will  be  from  nothing  so  much 
as  from  the  words  and  deeds  of  ordained  men 
who  are  not  faithful. 

“The  stucients  of  our  Theological  Seminary  are 
here.  To  them  his  parting  message  is  also 
addressed.  Some  of  us  know,  for  we  heard  it 
from  his  own  lips,  that,  in  his  last  days  here 
below,  nothing  lay  nearer  his  heart  among  all  the 
interests  of  the  Church  than  the  institution  in 
which  its  future  ministry  is  trained,  and  nothing 
caused  him  more  deep  solicitude  than  the  ques¬ 
tion,  What  kind  of  men  will  these  students  be  ? 
Know  then,  my  dear  brethren,  that  the  lesson  of 
his  end  is,  for  your  beginning,  the  lesson  of  faith- 


2  5 


fulness.  In  you  many  a  prayer  of  his  last  days 
will  be  fulfilled  if  you  look  forward  to  your 
ministry,  resolved  by  grace  to  be  faithful,  faithful 
to  Christ,  faithful  to  the  Church,  humbly,  unsel¬ 
fishly,  obediently  faithful,  faithful  in  all  things, 
faithful  unto  death. 

“  Most  of  those  who,  in  this  place,  heard  what 
he  said  before  he  fell  asleep  are  engaged  in  the 
special  service  of  this  congregation.  To  us  who 
are  serving  the  Lord  here,  and  to  this  whole  con¬ 
gregation,  the  words  came  not  only  from  one 
who  presided  over  the  affairs  of  our  whole  Church 
in  this  Province,  but  from  a  revered  and  beloved 
former  pastor.  Brethren,  in  this  strange  dispen¬ 
sation  the  Lord  our  Head  and  Saviour  admon¬ 
ishes  us  through  his  lips  to  be  faithful.  Let  us 
ponder  this  admonition  and  ask  what  does  it 
mean  for  our  congregation  ?  Let  each  one  ask, 
What  does  it  mean  for  me  ? 

“  The  representatives  of  two  schools  with  which 
he  had  stood  in  official  relations  are  here  to-day. 


26 


The  teachers  of  these  schools  were  present  on 
last  Sunday  afternoon.  The  admonition  is  ad¬ 
dressed  to  them  too,  in  their  particular  calling. 
To  the  young  persons  under  their  charge  the 
Holy  Spirit  speaks  to-day,  telling  them  of  Christ 
their  Saviour,  Whom  to  know  is  life  eternal,  Whom 
to  follow  and  to  serve  faithfully  even  unto  death 
is  the  highest  and  holiest  employment  of  life. 

“  Remembering  then  these  words  which  he 
spoke  before  he  fell  asleep  in  their  wide  application, 
assuredly  the  dear  ones  of  his  home  and  family 
circle,  though  they  feel  this  loss  as  none  of  us  can 
feel  it,  may  yet  be  comforted  by  the  thought  that 
his  significant  and  beautiful  end  may  be  used  by 
our  Lord  and  Saviour  for  so  much  and  so  great 
good.  We  all  desire,  as  far  as  we  are  able,  to 
help  them  bear  their  great  sorrow,  and  so  too  we 
call  upon  them  to  join  us  in  learning  the  lesson  of 
his  end  and  profiting  by  it  to  the  glory  of  his 
Saviour,  theirs  and  ours.  What  more  shall  I 
attempt  to  say  ?  What  more  need  be  said  ?  We 


-7 


will  let  the  Lord  speak  Who  admonishes  us  all 
to-day. 

“  As  we  reverently  and  affectionately  lay  to 
rest  all  that  is  mortal  of  this  beloved  brother  and 
revered  father  in  Jesus  Christ,  we  will  thank  the 
divine  Head  of  the  Church  for  all  that  He  has 
done  through  him  ;  we  will  rejoice,  while  we 
sorrow,  that  he  rests  from  his  labors,  and  his 
works  do  follow  him.  We  will  feel  that  in  his 
departure  the  bond  is  strengthened  which  ‘keeps 
us  in  everlasting  fellowship  with  the  Church 
triumphant.’  Amen.” 


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